Wednesday, July 24, 2013

shaved ice...

after starting our day with pouring rain we were thrilled to see the sun come out for a bit. we grabbed matthew's sister, madeleine, and headed to a little snowcone stand in downtown. it was amazing, and fluffly and gone in about 3 bites. they have the coolest picnic tables too- turquoise table with leopard benches. if i ever had a snowcone stand, leopard tables would be a necessity. after we finished our snowcones we went over to people watch, window shop and sit in the shade at a darling little outdoor mall. we took a trip into anthropologie when we got hot and then went right back out. it was so nice to be outside!

gracie picked out this book at anthropologie (their books are my weakness, i think more than their clothes!). through the whole store there were squeals of, "this is AMAZING! oh my gosh, mom! did you see this? this is AWESOME! look at all the FAIRIES! oh, i love it SO MUCH!" i am pretty sure she had the attention of nearly everyone within a 40 foot radius of us. the girl has an unending supply of excitement for everything. we can get her thrilled about anything, making even some of the most mundane tasks so much more enjoyable. she talked for at least 10 straight minutes on the way home telling us a story of a bad witch, mermaids, and fairies and a mom and 2 little girls, "and some parts are good and some parts are scary, but it's okay because we'll hold hands and we'll just love each other!" and that is exactly how she said it. she's a child who occasionally needs to have little breathers away from excitement, but you can't not be happy when you're around her.

maddie has developed a sudden attachment to lipgloss, and especially my make up bag i carry around in my purse (that i used to carry around, before she commandeered it). she has no less than 14 layers of lipgloss on at all times. she can't go to bed at night unless she is holding her favorite tube. i've kind of just given up in hopes that it's true when they tell you to pick your battles. she loves it, it keeps her entertained and according to google, there doesn't seem to be any danger in swallowing it. the second gracie snags a tube to put some on maddie is guaranteed to become hysterical. screaming, hands on her mouth, life may end hysterical. the lipgloss on it's own isn't too bad, but when you add the large purse filled with a domino, a bottle of nail polish (for emergencies), sunglasses, small elephant, empty pez dispenser and a few other random items it gets a little stressful.

i was so grateful to have madeleine come along. i've spent the last couple mornings in with the doctor getting x-rays and consultations for my shoulder and back. i have a couple bulging discs and a few nerves that are being pinched in my neck causing some pain. madeleine is always so quick to help out and the girls couldn't love her more. plus, having some adult conversation during the day that doesn't revolve around mermaids or fairies is kind of nice for me!

**gracie's shorts are from the disney line at target, modeled after their new beach party movie. when i told her they were from the movie she put them on and said, "look mom, i'm dancing just like them!" they are much, much cuter in person than online! i have more than a dozen bug bites on my legs thanks to an evening outside catching fireflies. while it is hot, pants keep me from itching them like crazy. these j crew pants fit great and allowed me to run/bend/move easily. and my wedges are the perfect heel, they give me a little height without compromising comfort...and they're leopard, so it's a win win.